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Its been a crazy summer! I am so far behind in relaying tales of my adventures this summer. No time to relay them now, but highlights:

Went to Yosemite and Sequoia over Memorial Day
Saw some movies
Want to get out of the country and do some traveling. (there is actually an unfinished Vacation Ideas blog post sitting around here
Traveled to Landers for the Perseid Meteor Shower and experienced the Integratron for the first time. Actually, I posted some Gorn photos so cruise over there..
Ohh- speaking of which, I need to update a ton of photos to Flickr!!

All three would make great blogs and as soon as I get some time I will write them out completely!

Just a few notes before I begin. If you haven't seen the movie, I will try and keep it as spoiler free as possible, but chances are, I will spoil the movie for you...Also, I love the original series of Star Trek. It is my favorite series of all of them and so please recognize that my feelings toward the latest Star Trek movie reflect that passion...

"This is not your father's Star Trek" was a tagline that was used to promote the newest movie in the Star Trek series, and it really worried me. I was never really excited about seeing the movie, let's face it, the last few movies were pretty boring and Gene Roddenberry's vision of the future was tarnished and kicked to the curb. All that began to change with the premiere of the third trailer of the movie which felt epic and really got me excited about seeing a Trek movie for the first time since Star Trek First Contact. I heard that it was going to be a reboot - something I really don't mind when done correctly (think James Bond and Casino Royale) but also tend to get bothered by when its just done for the sake of doing something different.

The start of the movie had me from the get-go. The starship Kelvin gets pummeled by a Romulan ship while George Kirk's wife is giving birth to his son, Jim. These are people I've heard about and it was heart wrenching to watch what transpired. So right away I was hooked into the movie. Watching Kirk and Spock grow up was also fun and engaging and there are tweaks here and there that are different from what we know, but within the creative rights to re-imagine. There are great references to Trek 2, some classic Trek lines and episodes, and even a throw away reference to the show Enterprise. JJ and his writers had me hook, line, and sinker.

Overall, I thought this was a great movie, with a great story line and above all else passes the great litmus test I have for Star Trek movies: Something big happens. There are fundamental changes to our characters - most of which I thought were for the better. The classic supporting cast of McCoy, Uhura, Chekov, Scotty, and Sulu all felt like the classic characters and their updates felt natural and with the times. Kirk and Spock also felt right - and updating of a classic that was new and familiar all at the same time.

And then it happened. They lost me. At one point in the movie, the writers decided to go too far with their liberties and do something that I thought was so reprehensible and disrespectful that I completely became detached emotionally from the film. It was like a cell phone going off in the theater or the film breaking or someone ripping off a band-aid.

After calming down, I understand why they did it, but do not in any way agree with the decision. There were so many other things to do to get to the same point in the plot, that it reeked of cheapness and cop out and gimmicky. It was the moment when I felt the writers were just doing it to say they "rebooted the franchise and to prove it we did this" and no more. I think someone must have realized it in the development of the story, because it was at this point that Leonard Nimoy appears in the movie as the Spock we know and love and I think in a way he helps smooth over the open wound.

I will give them credit for trying to work back into my good graces, but the last half of the movie just felt rushed. Things fell into place too fast and easily, and it seems like everything is back on track despite the changes. But you know what? I just didn't care. I had no connection to these strangers with familiar names pretending those I really cared about. Very disappointing since it all started out so well.

Maybe I am overreacting (duh, its a movie), and on repeated showings and as the years progress, I will probably like it more. Remember, I HATED Generations when it came out for killing Kirk (another reprehensible gimmick), but over the years have grown to respect it as a great character development piece. I think this Star Trek will do the same. You really get to know the characters better and see them develop and see major events shape their lives. In that sense, JJ and company have succeeded.

In the end, despite my frustration I want to reiterate that overall I thought this movie is a great movie - it will appeal to a great many different people - Trek fans and non-Trek fans. I hope this makes Star Trek more accessible and the classic series and the Next Gen/DS9/VOY series' more popular than ever before. It will lead to another movie, which I am certain will be much better than this one (it will be an even one!), and I hope that it keeps the franchise going for years to come.

I just wish they didn't have to blow up a certain planet and kill off a certain lady to do it. That really pissed me off.

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Captain's Log Supplemental: How does this movie rate with the others? This changes over time for me and is constantly evolving. I will have to go back and look at my old reviews from the 1990s to see how the last 20 years or so have changed my views, but this is how it rates the same day after seeing the new movie. I will expand my thoughts on these and why they are where they are on a later date..
1 - The trilogy series (2-3-4)
2 - The Undiscovered Country
3 - First Contact
4 - Star Trek 2009
5 - Generations
6 - Star Trek The Motion Picture
7 - The Final Frontier
8 - Insurrection
9 - Nemesis

These days, it is not very often that I will actually go and see a movie in the theaters, let alone on opening day. The movie experience in LA/OC just is not what it used to be. It is over $10 to see a movie now in the theater and then you have to deal with punks that talk through the entire movie or the smell of the Subway sandwiches from the family in your row that has smuggled food in because a popcorn and soda costs $15. The lone exception is the El Capitan Theater in Hollywood where Disney shows its latest releases. I prefer seeing movies there because despite the high kid volume, they at least tend to sit there and watch the movie. So in order to get me out to the theater on opening day it has to be an event movie like the latest Indiana Jones movie.

Personally, I can't believe they finally made an Indy 4 after 19 years. I remember so many times getting excited that they were actually going to do it, only to have my hopes dashed. But finally, it arrived here last night. In 19 years, I feel like I have missed so much in Indy's life. In the movie, they allude to a secret World War 2 history as well as some other interesting tidbits that we never got to see, but they also make reference to Marcus Brody and Henry Sr who have passed away since the last film. No one ever mentions Sallah. I mean he was not only in two movies, but narrates the Indiana Jones Adventure at Disneyland, so you would think that he'd get a nod, but sadly not.

I think Lucas and Spielberg have created an (almost) perfect Indy Movie for the time in Indy's life he is at. A bit retrospective, older, wiser, but still gonna punch the bad guys when he has to do so. I did feel that the movie needed one or two more action sequences to plus up the middle. The action sequences that were there were top notch. One thing that suffers is that you can clearly see when there is a stunt double in places for Harrison Ford. The good thing is that it is not very often, but for example, when Indy jumps on the back of Mutt's Harley, it is clearly a thinner guy in a gray wig holding on for dear life. It was so jarring it reminded me of when Leslie Neilsen would do amazing cart wheels in The Naked Gun.

Nits aside, I am glad I saw it opening day. One more note - I was surprised at the number of empty seats in the theater in Huntington Beach. I wonder if our wacky weather is to blame? Could also have been an early-ish showtime, but I hope business picks up!